Our department values a collegial, stimulating and intimate atmosphere: you will have a hard time not getting to know individual faculty members and your peers. Each year we admit approximately 6 to 10 PhD students, divided roughly evenly between the two PhD programmes. This allows for close contact between students and faculty members. The department fully recognises that PhD students will become colleagues in a short time and we value the contribution of the students to department life.
We also have been remarkably successful over the years in sending our MIS students to top-level national and international institutions, from the World Bank, the IMF, or the UN system more generally, to central banks, NGOs and think tanks. For those who choose to pursue a PhD, we have two excellent programmes of our own, and if you decide to test the waters at leading international universities, you should know that we have a great track record in terms of getting our students into top schools, both in the US and in Europe.
The class representatives respond to and assist with academic concerns of students, and represent the programme to relevant administrators. If you have any questions about student life at the Institute, please feel free to contact one of our class representatives.
Data collected since 2008 shows that after graduation the International Economics master students have been employed in all four sectors:
Information gathered since 2008 shows that after graduation, the Ph.D. students studying in the International Economics Department have been employed in all four sectors:
The MIE Mentorship Programme was launched by the class representatives of the 2020 and 2021 classes, Julieta Contreras and Shaina Hasan, to help the first year MIE students navigate the challenges of the rigorous Master in International Economics programme. Additionally, students also get support from their mentors on any other questions regarding settling into their life in Geneva
The mentors are volunteers from the second-year class who are matched with one or more mentees every semester based on their background and requirements. The assigned mentors are available through email/and calls and are free to set the agenda depending on their availability. The mentees are encouraged to meet their mentors at least once a month and the second-year students help with, but not limited to, the following:
Over the past five years, I have had a warm, enriching, and intellectually stimulating experience at the Institute. I chose the Economics Department at the Graduate Institute for its focus on training professional economists – apart from wanting to work with specific professors in my field of macroeconomics and finance. I have found that there are so many opportunities to make use of here, whether professional or academic, due to the Institute's strategic location and networks. For example, one can take courses in different Swiss universities or the SNB's Gerzensee study center, and even do fellowships in central banks and other international organisations. This allows us to grow our network throughout Switzerland (and onwards), and find new people to work with. Both the Department and the Institute also organise regular seminars, monthly talks, brown bag lunches, research shares, and other activities to bring together people working in different fields and disciplines, which I have found to be very useful and illuminating. Commenting on the academic environment at the Institute would be incomplete without a word on the diverse, wonderful student community – whether it is my colleagues and friends in the Economics Department, or the students I taught as a TA for three years – they are the true asset of the school. Of course, life in beautiful Geneva has also been an adventure on its own. I am really grateful to have had this opportunity to grow as a researcher, colleague, and teacher over the past five years.
Pursuing a PhD at the Graduate Institute in Geneva was one of the most enriching experiences of my life. Personally, I believe there are two main aspects that make the IHEID a remarkable place for studying economics. First, it offers a wide range of high level training in econometrics and economic methodology in general. All this training is policy-oriented, which makes courses and seminars not only interesting, but also useful career wise. Second, students, professors and researchers have very diverse backgrounds. They come from different countries, have different research interests, and often take a multidisciplinary approach. Diversity is an essential element of a truly transformative educational experience. I was lucky to be part of this community!
The famous story of Mencius chronicles the journey embarked on by his mother to find a place of abode that would inspire Mencius in his intellectual development. Mencius's mother moved three times in order to find the right neighborhood – next to a school – to raise her son. And the story follows that Mencius was inspired by the scholars he met every day there and eventually grew up to be one. Like Mencius, I was on a similar journey in finding such intellectual inspiration, hailing from Korea, the US and France, before settling in Geneva. I have realised that with a great diversity of students, the interdisciplinary nature of the programme, and the opportunity to learn in a state-of-the-art research institution in an intellectually stimulating environment, the Graduate Institute is akin to the very place where Mencius’s mother would have chosen to make her son study, and am grateful for the opportunity I have had at the Graduate Institute.
I choose to pursue my PhD in Development Economics at the Graduate Institute because of its academic rigour and focus on international policymaking. Key strengths of the Department are its rich array of diverse faculty members and student body, and its close connection with international organisations. There are several opportunities for students to interact with researchers working in these international organisations and to visit academics from leading universities through weekly department seminars and workshops. These interactions often lead to opportunities for students to collaborate on research projects and eventually placements. Academically, students can benefit from courses taught not just at the Institute but also at the University of Geneva and at the highly reputed Swiss National Bank’s Gerzensee programme for Swiss doctoral students. Being part of the Department has not only provided me with the rigorous academic training needed to be a doctoral researcher in Development Economics but it has also afforded me the tools to understand the complex and intricate nature of international policy questions.
Even though I held a bachelor's degree in Computer Engineering, the Faculty of Economics at the Graduate Institute welcomed me to their programme, which provided me with the perfect setting to transition into academic economics. The programme is a flawless amalgamation of theoretical economics and empirical applications of economic thinking. The core courses involve sound mathematics, while the electives allow you to explore the potency of economic tools in real-world applications.
I truly benefitted from the high teacher-to-student ratio, which allowed me to refine my research with some of the most world-renowned economists. Whilst a student at the Institute, I was deeply influenced by Professor Jean-Louis Arcand and Professor Damien Neven, both of whom are leading economists in the field of microeconomics. I believe that this high-quality training eventually led me to the doctoral program at the University of Cambridge. I intend to continually represent the finest qualities of the Department of Economics at The Graduate Institute, Geneva.
Kishen was awarded the Cambridge Trust, the Cambridge Nehru Bursary and the Jesus College Scholarship to continue for a PhD in Economics at the University of Cambridge, and has been selected as a recipient of the Adam Smith Fellowship at the Mercatus Centre in George Mason University.
If someone asks me to name the best moment of my life, I shall instantaneously respond "The Master in International Economics (MIS) programme by the Graduate Institute.” However, it was not an easy transition to immerse myself in the MIS programme's renowned rigorous training, until it all turns out to be a blessing in disguise. Whilst some master's programmes do not allow much personal attention and encourage competition rather than cooperation among fellow students, the MIS programme was definitely otherwise: I would have certainly not survived without the faculty who were patient enough to walk me through and without the support of my dear classmates who were more than happy to help one another and gave me ample opportunity for peer learning through their diversity.
If you already have a career, you must be wondering, “Is it worth giving up my financial stability?” A big yes, in my case. My skills and knowledge gained from policy-relevant teaching at the Institute enabled me to do internships at the Inter-American Development Bank and the OECD. After working for a Japanese aid agency in 2020, where I analysed the macro fundamental conditions of developing countries in the Middle East, I am currently expected to work for the OECD as a Junior Economist to employ impact evaluation methods. I am truly grateful for a wealth of opportunities this programme has opened up to me.
The Master in International Economics program has been a particularly rewarding experience. Firstly, the quality of admittees who would turn out classmates was impressive, allowing me to study alongside highly gifted and conscientious peers. Amidst laborious problem sets, the collective of high intellectual acuity and great class camaraderie made the approach to learning very collaborative and the workload manageable. The class diversity was great – 17 people representing 11 nationalities – and this further refined my cultural dexterity in team set ups. Of fond memories, I really enjoyed the course christened “alumni course” offered as weekly economic policy classes by a pool of Economics department alumni holding senior management positions at organizations such as the World Bank, IMF, OECD, PIIE, and central banks. It was a chance to appreciate firsthand, through the lens of acclaimed economists, how the incessant rigorous nature of the program relates to actual policy making and practice. Policy aside, at the end of a grueling econometrics exam, a class drink up by the lake helped wash out tears away.
At IHEID's Centre for International Environmental Studies I laid the foundation for my career in climate change. Besides the rigorous training in environmental economics and policy, my professors further nourished my interest through participation in PhD seminars and through close, regular exchange. Their support allowed me to intern with UN Environment in Geneva, where I gained my first professional experience within the field working on the Green Economy and which subsequently opened the doors to my career.
After my bachelor studies in economics and sustainable development in Bern I was looking for a master’s degree that would offer three things - rigorous analytical training, the possibility to continue an interdisciplinary approach and a new environment where I could grow personally. The Master in International Economics combines the three perfectly.
With a small class size, we are motivated to work as a group on the challenges given by our professors and to struggle and finally succeed together. I personally find the atmosphere of cooperation rather than competition very stimulating. The many interactions with bright, open and diverse minds from all over the world - be it in class or at the after-library-beer, with other economic students or with peers from the interdisciplinary programs - is absolutely inspiring.
At the Graduate Institute I found an academically challenging and personally stimulating new environment in the middle of an international community. Coming here was the ideal choice for me.
I chose the Graduate Institute given that it is an excellent place to connect with international organisations and their work, as well as related institutions in the private sector pursuing and studying similar issues. Since I am interested in the analysis of the latter, I considered the Institute to be the best place to get a sense of them.
Moreover, the Institute’s master’s degree in International Economics is one-of-a-kind. There are three main aspects that make the Master in International Economics unique. First, the Economics Department at the Graduate Institute has excellent professors who are influential academics and pioneers in their fields. Second, this programme has an applied approach: the tools taught in the International Economics programme can be easily transferred to real life cases. These tools are not limited to technical skills, but they also come in the form of examples given by professors. These are very palpable given that they have first-hand experience working in their fields and can give an account on what is usually done and how problems should be approached. And third, there is an environment of collaboration where you can develop skills together with your classmates. There is solidarity and friendship.
As a Geneva-born undergrad with a degree in International Relations and a major in Economics, the Graduate Institute appeared to me as the best-suited institution, not only in Switzerland but also internationally, to pursue a career orientated towards seeking solutions to tackle international issues. I chose the Master in International Economics for two main reasons: the challenging and rigorous training offered to students by some of the greatest professors in their respective fields of research, and the multicultural environment and the small size of the Department, which facilitates communication both between fellow students and between students and professors.
The element that I value most about this programme is the policy-relevant training that bridges theory with real-world problems. This is done mostly by solving applied exercises brought on by professors’ experiences. In the context of an exchange programme, I had the chance to compare my training with that of other students in a larger department in one of the leading universities in the world. This experience highlighted the quality of teaching offered by the Institute’s faculty as well as the benefits of interacting directly with the professors.
In addition, one of the key strengths of the Institute’s Economics Department consists in the broad range of research conducted both by students and professors. This fact proved to be beneficial to me, as I have now been able to narrow down my research interest. Furthermore, the combination of bright and highly motivated students with a stimulating and productive work environment creates an exciting intellectual atmosphere. It allowed me to develop a rigorous sense of analysis.
